NCC seeks faster reforms to boost competitiveness

The National Competitiveness Council (NCC) is looking to speed up reforms seen crucial in boosting the country’s competitiveness, saying there is no room for the Philippines to relax amid a one-notch ascent in ranking in the recent World Economic Forum (WEF) Global Competitiveness Index.

“We simply cannot afford to let up in our efforts to improve processes, introduce reforms, and make the country more competitive because other countries are also working hard,” NCC private sector co-chairman Guillermo Luz said.

The latest WEF Global Competitiveness Index showed two countries in ASEAN – Brunei and Vietnam – have overtaken the Philippines to take the fifth and sixth spots in the region, respectively.

Brunei improved its ranking by 12 spots this year while Indonesia improved by five, putting the Philippines as the seventh most competitive economy out of nine ASEAN countries ranked by the WEF.

“This basically illustrates the intensity of the competition in the region, with six countries all improving their performances in the last year,” Luz said.

According to the NCC, the areas which will contribute to improved competitiveness of the country in the short term are institutions, which refers to governance and bureaucracy improvements, as well as infra- Luz structure and primary education and health.

Over the medium-term, areas such as technological readiness, higher education, innovation and science and technology will play a bigger role in country competitiveness, it said.

“Investments will need to be made in these areas today in order to reap the benefits over the next three to five years,” the NCC said.

The Philippines ranked 56th out of 137 countries in this year’s report, up from its 57th position last year.

The country’s highest position since the WEF started using the current methodology in 2008 was achieved in 2015 when the country registered a ranking of 47th. Its lowest position was 87th in 2009.